Dan Ashworth has left his role as Man Utd sporting director after only five months at the club, the Premier League side have confirmed.
The Red Devils have made a terrible start to the new Premier season with Man Utd currently 13th in the table after 15 matches.
Man Utd spent around £180m on five summer signings in the form of Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro, Manuel Ugarte, Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui.
Most of those signings have failed to make a big enough impact this season and Erik ten Hag was replaced by Ruben Amorim last month.
And Ashworth has now left the club too with Man Utd selling it as a “mutual agreement” despite chasing him for months in the summer.
A statement read: “Dan Ashworth will be leaving his role as sporting director of Manchester United by mutual agreement. We would like to thank Dan for his work and support during a transitional period for the club and wish him well for the future.”
But The Athletic claim that sources have told them that it was Man Utd who ‘instigated the separation’ before the official announcement.
The report said: ‘Multiple sources, speaking anonymously like others in this story to protect relationships, say United instigated the separation. The club say the final agreement to end Ashworth’s contract was mutual.’
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Liverpool legend Graeme Souness referred to Ashworth and technical director Jason Wilcox as “so-called footballing people” after another summer of questionable incomings.
Souness said: “I think the club are at their lowest point in the history of the Premier League, with the lowest quality group of players they’ve had in that time.
“I look at Manchester United since Ineos came in and it’s screaming out to me that they don’t really get football. They’ve now got their so-called footballing people in charge, in Dan Ashworth and Jason Wilcox, and I can’t believe for a minute that they didn’t have an input on the players they signed in the summer.
“They brought in Manuel Ugarte, Matthijs de Ligt and Joshua Zirkzee. If they think those players are good enough for United, they’re wrong.
“They’ve still allowed £200m to be spent on players like that. They’ve had one summer at the club and look what they’ve done with it. That has to fall at Ashworth’s door.
“Ruben Amorim’s job now is to get the best out of this group of players, in whatever system that may be. He is walking into what is a very difficult job.”
